Offline Openstreetmap

OpenStreetMap can be used offline, without an internet connection, in a number of ways. In fact some offline offerings can be vastly superior to those of other map data providers, because OpenStreetMap is free (zero cost) and we are free (as in freedom) to download data in bulk. By contrast, commercial map providers will often deliberately use technical barriers to limit offline storage/distribution of their data.

Working offline is helpful for all sorts of reasons. Local storage is often faster than making requests to the internet. If you are travelling abroad, and want to save on roaming fees. For working in countryside locations where 3G connections are unreliable, or underground (ever wanted to browse a map while on the metro?). OpenStreetMap can be used in the developing world, and in disaster zones where internet is not available.

Since OpenStreetMap data has so many uses, and a lively ecosystem of developers creating different tools, there are many options. See the list of available software or other possibilities of using OpenStreetMap. Some experimentation may be necessary to find the tool or tools which are right for the job. Obviously you should do this experimentation while you're still able to download software and instructions!

Contents

Using the data offline

Many options exist:

See the feature comparison tables in the Software lists (subsections for different device classes/operating systems). Look into the column "Stores map-data on-board" (=yes) for offline software and compare the other features (e.g. routing, GPS, …).

Many apps exist for Android and iOS devices which use offline map data (some only for displaying a map, some for more – e.g. routing). Look at the "Stores map-data on-board" column (=yes).

For downloading (sometimes into a browse cache) tiles (map images) to your computer and then be able to browse the map offline, you can also use the following tools. Note that this method is quite restricted to a small area/few zoom levels due to big size of readily rendered tiles (tile provider usage policies, bandwidth, storage!).

Rendering data yourself

The web map is rendered by Mapnik or Osmarender, these can be installed on your system to allow you to render maps your way. Osmarender can be used directly in a browser which will be slow, installing mapnik is very possible even with little knowledge about the tools you need to install. There are a few more rendering solutions that can work offline, see Rendering.

Edit offline

You can use editors, JOSM and Merkaator to do offline editing. The process is as follows